Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When someone works at one of the government customer service counters, they are providing an essential service as a front-line worker. At times, I’m sure, regardless of how hard they work and how hard they try, there are many days they think it’s probably a thankless job. I’m thankful and grateful that many of them keep coming back day after day and providing the essential services that we need so much. So when I come across a matter like I’m going to raise today, I want to raise it with both concern and respect for the job that our public service staff are certainly doing.

Over the years many of us have heard how the motor vehicle registry office is congested. I know the staffers are certainly doing the best that they can. I’ve been there even myself, sitting back and watching even the slightest conversation and hearing the tenseness and frustration that might be happening, but I’ve always watched and observed that the staff handle themselves very professionally. I certainly want to make sure that’s noted for the record and they’re given credit for that.

I thought personally, watching what the Department of Transportation did by putting a TV in the seating area was an excellent way to deal with possible frustration, and I thought that, watching most patrons there, they seemed to be preoccupied by watching cooking shows or fishing shows and they let the time go by unnoticed. The fact is, it still can’t change the reality that most people are unable to wait more than 15 minutes because of breaks that they’re getting away from the daily routine of their jobs or personal limitations. The suggestion was brought to me, why doesn’t the GNWT look at adding a couple of kiosks that people can self-serve themselves through the motor vehicle registration process. This could also include other types of renewals. This is done in other provinces, so why couldn’t it be done here?

Another suggestion, of course, was the motor vehicle registry hours are now, of course, as people are saying, better than bankers’ hours, officially. A person can look no further than across the street and see that the TD Bank is now open on Saturdays. The question would be why? The fact is, they know that not everybody can make 9:00 to 4:00 and they’re out there for customer service.

Another suggestion that came along in the same vein is what about moving to some of these things as on-line services? This has certainly been done in

Ontario, where the government is trying to make their public services as accessible as possible.

Finally, good credit needs to go out to the City of Yellowknife who has rolled out many of their customer service-based priorities to the citizens on line, which makes it very convenient.

During question period I will raise many of these issues and ask the Minister of Transportation if there is a way they can look into these matters and address some of these concerns.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday I stated the housing situation in the Northwest Territories is at the boiling point. Today I have to restate that again.

People in Nunakput are extremely anxious over the eviction notices. The way that evictions are being handled is unacceptable. The situation is out of control. When people in the communities are evicted, where are they supposed to live? What are the social consequences of these evictions? We know the answers: overcrowding, family violence, and homelessness. The e-mails, letters, and phone calls I’m getting on this issue are heartbreaking.

We have never seen harder times in the communities or greater disparity between families. Many parents feel hopelessness and I’m deeply worried about them. This government cannot take such drastic measures without taking impact on people into account. It’s extremely irresponsible. In Yellowknife and other major centres, families at least have somewhere to get help. In the remote communities, once you’re evicted, the family has nowhere to go.

The inequalities between the communities are also getting worse. Solving our homelessness problem is supposed to be a major priority of this government, but instead we are kicking people out of their homes because they can’t pay their arrears and have no means to because there’s no work.

I’ve spoken about these arrears many times. I’ve urged the Minister to get the staff to review each and every one of these situations to reallocate the arrears. Many people do not actually owe as much as the Housing Corporation claims. This has happened because the system, and reporting the income, and calculating rent are cumbersome and simply not working.

Families in Nunakput are struggling. The cost of living is way too high and jobs are scarce. We cannot continue to kick people out of their homes in this way. It’s not right. It’s a government

responsibility to give a person a house, a roof over their head so they don’t have anything to worry about and provide for their families.

I will have questions for the Minister at the appropriate time.

Thank you, Mr. Jacobson. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The NWT Housing Corporation is currently in the middle of a review of its Shelter Policy. I commend this House for recognizing the importance of this review, and for ensuring that adequate funds for a thorough review were approved in our 2011-2012 budget. This review is important, both to MLAs and to our constituents, and approving those funds has allowed for a comprehensive review, not just a scratch of the surface.

I had an opportunity to provide input to the review earlier this summer and I spent considerable time with the interviewer itemizing my concerns. Mine are only a few of the concerns that are out there. The list is almost endless. For the record, here are mine.

First, there has to be a valid continuum of housing from homelessness to homeownership. We have gaps in the continuum right now, specifically in the area of transition housing and for supported independent living housing for disabled citizens. What little transition housing we do have is provided by non-government organizations and they struggle with their financing. Government, whether it be the Housing Corporation or another department of this government, must provide consistent and adequate funding to transition housing service providers.

Second, we need to revamp how we charge rent for public housing. Our goal in the provision of housing should be to make residents self-sufficient and independent. The current policies and rent scales do not encourage that.

Thirdly, Yellowknife non-government operations provide emergency shelter services here in the city, but their funding varies widely. It seems to depend on the department providing the funding and the circumstances specific to the NGO. There needs to be consistent, equitable, and fair funding for our NGO service providers, no matter which department of the government it comes from.

Fourth, there’s a need for a cross-departmental, government-wide review of all policies that impact the provision of housing, the users of public housing, tenancy, and income support. We currently have policies in one part of the government which contravene or inhibit the

application of policies in another part of our government, and our residents suffer as a result. We need to review and revise to make policies enabling, not disabling.

Lastly, a review of the Residential Tenancy Act is needed in three specific areas: the powers of the rental officer, the lack of authority for transitional housing, and consideration must be given to limiting the amount of any annual rent increase.

The election looms large and housing is a particularly...

Ms. Bisaro, your time for your Member’s statement has expired.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

The election looms large and housing is a particularly important issue for all of our constituents. I urge all NWT residents to take action during the campaign. When a candidate appears at your door, tell them of your housing concerns and ask them how they will deal with them if elected.

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In extraordinary times we as the government need to do the extraordinary things to help our people in our communities. No matter how much we prepare for emergencies and training, there is nothing we can do for the unplanned events. However, we still continue to prepare.

The town of Norman Wells, which happens to sit on the largest oil discovery on our lands since the 1920s, had their gas line come close to being shut down, which meant our residents, all of the entire town, would have been completely cut off from their only source of energy. Basically lights out for the entire town.

This situation came close to reality because of two broken pipelines that just happened, and that’s another Member’s statement. This caused the Town of Norman Wells to declare a state of emergency. Now the real threat of having no gas at all, the town did an extraordinary thing: it brought in a machine to help out with the gas supplies. This was done because safety first for the people, safety for our elders, and basically their actions would seem reasonable, given the challenges before them. Very simple: you either have power or no power. We chose power to the people.

A lot of good, hardworking people are still working with us on a long-term solution to deal with the

shortage of natural gas. Basically the Town of Norman Wells, the Norman Wells oilfield is running dry. Imperial Oil needs natural gas for their own operations and cannot afford to supply the town anymore.

Mr. Speaker, the town requested financial assistance from our federal government and the Government of the Northwest Territories. To date I don’t believe the feds have ever replied, and our government said no to the immediacy for financial assistance. They said they did not meet the criteria under the Extraordinary Funding Policy. The government said you’re the provider, you pay. Besides, because of the healthy fiscal position with the reserve funds from the natural gas or you can recoup…

Mr. Yakeleya, your time for your Member’s statement has expired.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

Mr. Speaker, the town, like many of community governments, is being punished for their strict discipline and fiscal responsibility. So what’s the message we are going to give our communities? Be prepared to pay? Not all communities are equal and yet our government is looked upon to help communities and help with the extraordinary, unplanned circumstances beyond anybody’s control.

Mr. Speaker, while the Town of Norman Wells appreciates the immediate support by the GNWT department to examine long-term solutions to their shortage of the natural gas issue and an offer to cover for personnel to help with the current issue due to the broken lines in the pipeline, it falls short of their request to cover the larger bill to recover the cost of keeping the power on in the town of Norman Wells at this time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Michael McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to honour the graduating class of Deh Gah Elementary and Secondary School. It gives me great pleasure to announce the Fort Providence 2011 high school graduates. They are: Ms. Megan Antoine, who will be attending Vancouver Island University; Ms. Veronica Bouvier, who will be attending Dawson Creek College; Ms. Shiana Sabourin, who will be attending Camosun College in Victoria; Ms. Kristy Tanche, who will also be attending Camosun College in Victoria; and Mr.

Ben Vandell, who will be attending Vancouver Island University.

Mr. Speaker, I also congratulate the families and community for their contribution to the success of these students. We all know it takes hard work, commitment, and perseverance to finalize this first milestone in a youth’s life. Youthfulness can bring many things such as distractions, both good and bad, and without family direction and community support, this can be a challenging task at times.

Ms. Veronica Bouvier knows this firsthand as an adult returning to school. Recognizing the value of a good education, she chose to return to school to complete her grade 12. This graduation is a testament to her commitment, and demonstrates to others the value of a high school diploma. When the task is shared between family, friends, and community, the goals achieved can be very rewarding, as proven by the achievements of these students.

Mr. Speaker, to the Deh Gah graduating class of 2011 I offer this: Celebrate this special day with pride and a sense of great achievement, knowing that many people share in your desire for a future filled with happiness and success.

Mr. Speaker, the community is holding the graduation ceremony today in the community hall and will be followed by a feast, a grand march, and a dance. It is with great regret that I won’t be there on time to take part in the festivities, but certainly will be around to personally congratulate each graduate over this weekend. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Monfwi, Mr. Lafferty.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. It gives me great pleasure to recognize Mr. Ted Blondin, who is the chairperson of the Tlicho Community Services Agency and who is here with us in the gallery. Welcome.

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize two constituents of the Great Slave riding: Andrew Wiley and Karen Wiley. Welcome to the gallery.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to mark this occasion by recognizing Ms. Emma

Ouellette, who is paging in this Assembly while we’re in our final sitting. To make special note, she is the daughter of Darrin Ouellette, who once was a table officer who now works for the Assembly as the director of corporate services. Welcome.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Welcome everyone in the gallery today. I hope you’re enjoying the proceedings.

Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As indicated in my Member’s statement, I have questions for the Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs.

I’m sure the Minister is aware that we have a full-time fire chief in Hay River right now and part of his mandate is to perform some of the duties that would normally be performed from the office of the fire marshal. So when there were inspections or work required in Hay River, it would require the fire marshal to travel from Fort Smith to do that work, and so the government is obviously saving some money there. I’d like to know if that correlates to a contribution of any kind to the Town of Hay River for the support of this full-time position undertaking these duties.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. Robert McLeod.